In The Blink Of An Eye
by Melody Malone
Summary: Troy Bolton wakes up in hospital, not knowing who he is, or what's happened. All he can remember is a car, and a girl he can't get out of his head. Troyella, and a little Ryelsi and Chaylor. Sad fic. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

_Authors Note: It's a short prologue I know, but I didn't want to start any of the real drama in the opening, and I wanted to leave it on a cliffhanger. Hope you enjoy._

* * *

**In The Blink Of An Eye**

**Chapter One**

The receptionist of Albuquerque General hummed gently to herself whilst filing her nails. Tonight had been a slow night, surprisingly. She had been on duty for an hour, and all she'd seen was the occasional old lady. It had been the last day of senior class, and she had expected lots of kids coming in excessively drunk, or with minor injuries that were the result of stupid pranks. She sighed to herself, staring at the doors of the emergency room. It was really quiet. Too quiet. She was about to sit down to log onto an instant messager program out of boredom, when the doors to the emergency room swung open, and voices all tried to shout over eachother.  
"This is Troy Bolton, he seems to have had a bump on the head. He stats are normal, but he hasn't woke up."  
"Jeez, this kids pretty beat up. What was it, a fight he lost?"  
"No, we think he was part of the accident that happened earlier in the evening. Some passing car saw him lying next to the road and figured they'd call us."  
"Damn, I thought we had everyone from that. Have you checked for anyone else that might have been in the car?"  
"There's a search team looking, but we think we have them all. What's this guy's chances? I think he's some superstar basketball kid or something, my son's played his team before."  
"I don't care who he is, he's just another patient to me! Okay, lets treat the head first, then lets suture some of these wounds. He might have some glass shards inbedded in him, so we need to take the upmost care. Have you informed his parents?"  
"They're on their way sir."  
"Okay, let's sort this kid out. Last day of senior year...What a way to remember it..." The receptionist watched as the boy on the trolley was rushed into the first available operating room, and sighed, before continuing to file her nails.

"Troy…Troy, wake up honey, please…" He couldn't work out where he was, and slowly opened his eyes, instantly closing them again at the harshness of the light in the room. It felt like he hadn't seen daylight for days. While squinting, he saw himself wrapped in a white sheet. He faintly heard a heart monitor beeping next to him, and with his arm stretched out, he could feel the cool metal sides of a hospital bed. He was confused. He didn't remember coming into the hospital. Thinking harder, he realised he couldn't remember anything about how he had got there, or what was going on. A cold sweat covered his body suddenly, and he knew that if he wanted answers, he was going to need to open his eyes.

"Mm…" Was all he could muster to say, in a quiet a raspy voice. When he eventually opened his eyes fully, he saw a woman standing beside his bed, with tears twinkling in her eyes. He looked confused for a second, as he watched her survey the cuts and bruises on his body. _'Bruises? Cuts? How did they get there…'  
_"Do you…recognise me?" She said, hesitantly. The boy opened his eyes wide, and shook his head, suddenly scared. Should he? Why didn't he? A man stepped towards the bed also. He looked as tired and worn out as the woman did.  
"She's your mom…I'm your dad." He nodded, shaking slightly, and feeling very freaked out that he didn't recognise the faces of his own parents.  
"But…How--"  
"Shh, baby." Said his so-called mother. "Don't worry about it. Not right now. The important thing is you're awake, Troy."  
"Who?" The boy was shaking by now, and his mother squeezed his hand.  
"That's you." His dad said, as the doctor came over to his bed. "Doctor...Do we know when he's going to be better?"  
"We can't say for sure Mr. Bolton...It could be a long while, it could be today...He just needs to remember something important...It could be the trigger to everything."  
"The car..." Muttered Troy, half consciously. His parents and the doctor looked at him. "There… There was...A car, a-and...NO STOP!!" Nothing could console the boy then, as he turned awkwardly, and started sobbing into his pillow.

Nothing was clear in Troy's head. The faces he could see in his dreams were blurry and faded, but he could hear voices clearly. He could see a big building, with a car parked outside the front of it, but no matter how hard Troy tried, everyone else's faces turned into silhouettes.  
"Come on guys, we wanna get going before it starts getting dark." A guy's voice. Troy knew it, but he couldn't work out from where.  
"Relax Chad, jeez, it's not like we're travelling to the North Pole." Chad? Troy knew he knew that name...  
"Thanks for inviting me guys. You know, you didn't have to, I know we're not all that close." '_She sounds so scared, but who is she...'  
_"Hey Kels, it's fine, don't worry about it." Troy heard his own voice say.  
"Sharpay, you didn't need to pack that much, we're not going to a five star hotel."  
"What! How am I supposed to do my hair! And my makeup! Ryan, you never said ANYTHING about no hotels." Troy heard the girl screech, which was a familiar sound.  
"Just enjoy it sis, think of it as our last adventure before we go off to college."  
"Ryan's right. The last Wildcat outing, and I want it to be special." Troy heard his voice again, and he began sweating in his sleep. Wildcats?  
"Course it'll be special, wildcat. I'm spending it with you." At the last voice, Troy began murmuring in his sleep, and tossing and turning, before sitting bolt upright in his hospital bed.

"…Just…Just a dream." He muttered to himself, rubbing his eyes. He looked around, and saw the lights in the hospital ward were dimmed. Squinting at the clock on the wall, he saw it was about four in the morning. Closing his eyes, Troy tried to get back to sleep, but all he could hear was the last voice of the girl in his dream. Troy was unsure whether he had got back to sleep or not, but the next thing he heard was his mother's voice.  
"Troy…Are you awake?"  
"…Yeah." He said, slowly, looking over his mother's face, trying to find something that would trigger a feeling, a memory. But his mind remained blank, so he looked back down into his lap. His mother nodded, as if to understand what that look meant.  
"I um…brought you something. I thought that it might help, you know…Jog a few things."  
"…I was going on a trip, wasn't I?" Troy said, suddenly. "I…I can hear voices, but…" He trailed off, feeling useless. His mother looked sad, and got a book out of her bag.  
"This um…this was your yearbook. From your senior year. I found it in your room while I was getting some of your stuff together, and I thought it might help." To try and get Troy to save his energy, his mom flicked the pages until it came to a group shot. Troy put his hand on top of the page before she could turn it.  
"Who are they?" Troy's mother knew what picture he was looking at, but all the same, looked down at the photo.  
"They're your friends." She said softly. "The girl next to you is Sharpay, then you've got her brother, Ryan. Then your best friend, Chad, and then there's Taylor. Kelsi's on the end. And um…on the other side of you is Gabriella." Troy just nodded, trying to recall the names, but it didn't work.  
"Well…if they're my friends then…Seeing them would be able to help me! Do…Do you think they could come and visit me?" Troy's mother quickly picked up the book and held it against her chest. Eventually, she replied;  
"I wish."

After his mom had left, Troy requested not to have anymore visitors that day. He wasn't up for it.  
"Tell my mom and dad that I'm sorry." He said meekly to one of the nurses. She smiled at him sweetly and nodded, before making a note on the board that he didn't want visitors. Troy closed his eyes, and began trying to place the faces with the voices, but got stuck as he thought of a girl with dark hair, and the most amazing eyes you had ever seen. Apparently she was called Gabriella. He began to tear up, but wiped his eye quickly.  
'_Why is thinking of her so painful?'_


	2. Chapter 2

**In The Blink Of An Eye  
****Chapter Two**

Troy found himself drifting off into another dream. He was standing in a school hall, with nameless faces rushing past him, occasionally smiling at him. Suddenly, he felt something--or someone, knock into his arm.  
"Hey, Kels, where's the fire?" He laughed, picking up some papers. The girl, who Troy recognised from the photo, smiled at him.  
"Just getting this last few pieces of paperwork to Miss Darbus." She explained, holding the sheets of music close to her chest. "I wrote a..another musical. Just in case she wanted to use it for next year's production. Th-there's a lot of talented people joining drama club, so I figured…yknow."  
"That's cool." Troy smiled at her, handing the last few sheets to her. "Are you coming with us on our road trip tonight?" She bit her lip.  
"I've got my things with me…Well…In my locker. But… I don't know Troy…I…I don't really do good with Sharpay in yknow…a social capacity."  
"Don't worry about that." He hugged her. "Us guys love you, and Gab'll want you to be there. And Ryan, of course." He watched the girl blush.  
"Alright I guess I could come along…" She muttered. "It's only for a few days, my mom won't mind…She said I should get out…see places before I started college."  
"Great, I'll see you then. We're taking Chad's car, it's the biggest." Kelsi nodded, and rushed off.

Troy saw himself continue walking to...wherever it was, when a slender girl put her hands over his eyes. In his dream, he could smell her scent, and he almost wished he could reach out and touch her.  
"Guess who?" Her voice rung out, with a gentle giggle. Troy turned round, and faced the girl who he knew as Gabriella.  
"Hey you." He smiled. "you excited?"  
"Course I am. A few days away with my friends, and with you…And no school to worry about!"  
"Yeah. But the best part is the spending it with you." He said, giving her a kiss on her forehead. She giggled again, and kissed his nose.  
"I'm gonna go clear out my locker, you coming?"  
"Roughly translated as you need someone to carry all your big scary science books back to the library?" Gabriella grinned.  
"Something like that." She said, grabbing hold of his hand, and pulling him along the hallway. The scene began to fade, and Troy desperately tried to hold onto it, to understand where he and these people were going, and to remember more about Gabriella, but the scene eventually faded to black, and he felt himself opening his eyes, at the sound of voices talking to each other, and the sound of a bed being wheeled in next to him.

"How's she doing?" Asked a nurse.  
"Better shape than she was for the past week...Same accident as that Bolton kid, I think." Said another nurse, who was lifting the person onto a bed.  
"Really?" Asked the first.  
"Yeah...The poor girls not come around yet, she's been down in intensive care all week. Third degree burns to her face and torso. Looked pretty bad when she came in, but she seems to be healing pretty well. Her boyfriends comatose and he's still down there." Troy just lay there and listened to them discussing this girl, feeling a glimmer of hope.  
'_If she was in the same accident as me, I must know her' _He thought. _'Gabriella, could that be you? Are you okay. But…boyfriend. That dream…I thought I was her boyfriend' _Troy quickly closed his eyes again and pretended to be asleep as one of the nurses started pulling open the curtains to his bed.

Troy lay there for most of the day when he didn't have visitors, trying to gain his memory back on what little he knew. He lay there, listening to the girl next to him breathing. From what he could tell from overhearing the nurses, she still hadn't woke up. Her bed was raised, and often her curtain was closed, so Troy never got a chance to see her face..  
"Who are you..." He whispered to himself, before settling down to sleep. The second he was asleep, he started dreaming again.

He saw himself outside again, like in his first dream, with the people from the photograph. One by one, they were climbing into the car, Chad in the drivers seat, the girl he recognised from the photograph as Taylor up front next to him. Then Troy sat by the window, with Gabriella next to him, her head on his shoulder sleepily. A blonde girl called Sharpay sat next to Gabriella, which she didn't look too happy about. Behind them, squashed in with the luggage, sat the girl from before, Kelsi, and a guy who Troy assumed was Ryan.  
"We all strapped in and ready to rock?!" Shouted Chad, enthusiastically. No-one answered. "Guys? You all gone to sleep back there?"  
"This is…really it." Said Gabriella, eventually. "We're really never going back to East High. This is actually the last time we'll be driving out of this parking lot."  
"Yeah…" Muttered Taylor, from the front. "And yknow…This'll be one of the last times we all see each other together. Like this, at least. Once this summers over, we'll all be going off to college, separately." She looked at Chad at this point, and Troy saw in the mirror that he had teared up a little at that.  
"Hey guys, don't be upset. It's not like we're all dying!" Laughed Ryan. Kelsi gave him an odd look. "No I just mean…We'll still be around. No matter what happens, we'll always know that we're friends, right?  
"Yeah." Everyone looked shocked, as the next person who spoke was Sharpay. "What! I've kinda…grown a soft spot for you guys. But you ever quote me on that, and you're dead." Gabriella smiled softly.  
"We'll be friends forever."  
"No matter what happens." Added Troy, helpfully.  
"We'll always have each other, no matter how shit life is!" Laughed Chad.  
"We'll be at each others weddings, and babies christenings." Said Taylor.  
"We'll never forget all the good times we had at school." Ryan added on.  
"Even the arguments. They made us who we are" Laughed Sharpay, awkwardly.  
"We'll be friends…even when we're gone." Whispered Kelsi, curling up to Ryan. They all stayed silent for a second.  
"Ugh, you guys, you make me wanna throw up." Laughed Chad, interrupting the silence. "Come on it's getting dark. If we leave now, we'll hit California in a day or so." They all nodded in agreement, and settled down for their drive.

They had been driving for about an hour, and were just reaching the outskirts of Albuquerque. They would have got further by now, but Chad had got them lost, and gone down several wrong turnings.  
"It's really dark outside.." Shivered Gabriella  
"Yeah...Chad honey, maybe you should turn back!!" Said Taylor, nervously.  
"Guys, don't worry! We'll find a service stop in a mile or so!" He said, shooing her away. It started raining, and as much as he didn't want to admit it to the others, Chad was terrified. He could barely see the road. "We'll be okay guys." He said, as much to himself as the others. "Just a little while long--"  
"CHAD!" Screamed Gabriella, grabbing onto Troy tightly." LOOK OUT!!" Chad's eyes went wide as they saw a truck hurtelling towards them.  
"Guys WAIT! We'll be okay!" Then Chad couldn't see anything. Chad was unconcious.  
And the minivan rolled down the side of the hill.  
Then there was silence

Then Troy woke up. He felt his eyes, he'd been crying. Trying to work out what had woke him, he heard a commotion at the girl's bed.  
"EVEN WHEN WE'RE GONE!" She was screaming loudly, and her sobs were just as loud. "WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME THEN!!" She was evidently having a bad dream. She continued for a few minutes, before the nurses managed to calm her down.

The next thing Troy remembered was that it was morning, and he heard for voices of his mum and dad talking to his doctor. The curtain was drawn, but their voices were clear.  
"So...She's woke up now?" Said Mr. Bolton  
"Yes...She's in a state of shock at the moment. The last thing she remembers is speaking to your son. She's terrified that she's alone, which is why we're asking your permission to get her and your son speaking to each other."  
"But…isn't seeing him…forcing him to remember? Shouldn't he be doing it naturally?" Asked his mom, nervously.  
"Trust me Mrs. Bolton, it could be very beneficial for your son, but I can understand your hesitation. I have her parent's permission, I just need yours. Of course, if it becomes too stressful for Troy, we'll move her to a different room." Troy bit his lip, and there was silence.  
"Fine." Said his father eventually. "But...Could they be moved to a private room? I don't want them having to remember all of that with everyone watching."  
"Yes, of course." Said the doctor, as a nurse pulled the curtains open around Troy.  
"Hey, how are you today?" Troy could see his parents and the nurse were purposely crowding around him to block his view of the bed being moved to an empty room.  
"A...A little better..." He mumbled. He hadn't told his parents or anyone else about remembering the crash, because he didn't want to upset them, or have them pushing him to remember more.  
"Well, we're gonna take you to see someone, and she'll hopefully be able to jog your memory a little - is that okay?" Troy nodded.  
"Y-Yeah..." He said. With that, his mum and dad kissed him, and the nurse led him to the empty room.

The girl was sitting up in her bed, looking down at her lap. She looked so sad, that Troy was terrified he wouldn't instantly remember her, and that it'd make her even sadder. Steadying Troy on his feet, the nurse left the room, and Troy nervously approached the bed. He looked at the girls hair, and her build, and smiled, instantly recognising her.  
"…Kelsi?" The small girl looked up, and Troy tried not to look at the scarring across her face. Her tired, and no longer excitable eyes looked at him.  
"Troy!" She gasped, leaning forward in pain to hug him. Troy hugged back, and before Kelsi could ask him about any of the others, he had to tell her what was going on..  
"Kels...I've lost my memory...a-and...I know it's gonna hurt but...I need you to tell me as much as you can about what happened."


	3. Chapter 3

**In The Blink Of An Eye**

**Chapter 3**

Kelsi withdrew into herself a second, biting her lip, and looking away.  
"You don't….understand what you're asking me to remember, Troy." Her voice was shaking, and Troy saw that her body was shaking just as much. "We….we were going on a roadtrip to California…Chad insisted on leaving that night, and…it was dark."  
"Kelsi, I know that." Troy said gently, scared he was pushing her too much. "I know….about the accident. About the truck. Do you…remember anything after--" Troy suddenly stopped talking, and staggered backwards towards his bed.  
"Troy, are you okay??" Asked Kelsi. He didn't answer as he sat back down on his bed. Voices, images, were shooting through his head.

He was coughing. Looking around him, all he saw was the dark, and no-one around him. He was still sitting in his car seat, but panicked when he looked around, and didn't see Gabriella next to him, or anywhere nearby.  
"Gabriella?" He whispered, holding in the sobs. He needed to find her. He sat silent for a while, trying to work out what to do next, until he heard someone crying out a little behind him.  
"Gabriella?" He repeated.  
"Troy, is that you?" He recognised her voice, and although it wasn't Gabriella's, he crawled out of the car, and towards in.  
"Kelsi?" She looked round nervously, and took his hand.  
"Troy!" She sobbed, in a whisper. "It…it hur-hurts…please stop it hurting…" Troy carefully and slowly made his way next to Kelsi, and gasped. There were burns covering her face, and her skin was grazed from being thrown from the car. She was barely recognisable if it wasn't for her voice. "Wh..What're we gonna do!!" Troy looked around, and saw the others weren't there. The crash must've thrown them out the car. Realising the severity of the accident, Troy looked over Kelsi again.  
"Kelsi, your face!" He paniced. Kelsi murmured behind her burns.  
"I...I know...I'm...I'm feeling faint.." She panted.  
"NO! Kelsi, you can't sleep. Try and stay awake."  
"Troy..." She smiled weakly, yet reassuringly. "I'm not going anywhere, just...make sure Ryan's okay...For me...Please? And the others…You need to find Gabriella." Troy nodded, as Kelsi gently closed her eyes. Troy daren't breathe for a few seconds, and watched Kelsi's shallow breaths, to make sure sure she was still breathing in her unconciousness. After a few minutes, he clambered out of the car wreck to find the others.

"I...I remember all about...You…" He smiled weakly. "I..I was so worried about you. We couldn't lose our playmaker." Kelsi smiled weakly.  
"I guess I remembered our promise." She whispered. "That we'd never leave eachother. Do you…remember that?" Troy nodded.  
"I'll still be at your wedding, Kels." He said, smiling slightly. "But, how are the others??" Troy asked, still terrified about Gabriella's whereabouts. Kelsi shook her head.  
"They won't tell me. They said that…it's best I just concentrate on getting better for now." Troy nodded.  
"They said the same to me. That I need to get better before I think about anyone else. It's killing me though." He sighed.  
"I agree. I don't…even know where Ryan is…"  
"Ryan…is he your boyfriend?" Troy asked. Kelsi looked confused as to why he'd have to ask, but then remembered that he couldn't remember.  
"Y-Yeah…Why? Where is he?"  
"I overheard the doctors when you got brought up…They said that your um…Your boyfriend was in a coma." Kelsi let out a sob, and Troy stroked her hand.  
"You know he….he got offered to do some work on Broadway… To practise his skills…He told me that afternoon, he was so excited…Not even Sharpay knew about it…" She sobbed.  
"He'll…he'll still be able to do it, Kelsi." Troy worried, cursing himself for saying anything at all.  
"Ryan…" She sobbed weakly.

The nurse came in to check on Troy and Kelsi a few hours later, and found Kelsi asleep, having exhausted herself from crying, with Troy sitting on a chair nearby, resting his head on the bars of her bed. When Troy awoke a few hours later, he found he was in his bed in that room, and his mum and dad were sitting by him.  
"Troy…The doctors…Told us what you remembered. The nurse told him how you told Kelsi about Ryan…And remembering helping her." Said his mom, softly. "Why didn't you tell us you knew about the crash?"  
"…I couldn't see you upset that I remembered." He said, softly. "I…I couldn't tell you any of it."  
"Son…We know you have to remember it sooner or later." His dad said, eventually. "It'll take time, but you will have to remember it. And I want to be able to understand what you went through." Troy nodded slowly, and looked over at Kelsi's bed.  
"Is…she okay?" His mom nodded.  
"She's a little shook up, but she needed to know. We're gonna keep you both in this room now." Troy nodded, and concentrated on his dad's face. A memory…a strong memory was coming into focus. It wasn't connected to the accident he was sure. He was standing in a school gym, and his dad was blowing a whistle…Troy squinted confused, then said;  
"Basketball?" Troy saw his dad's face light up.  
"What about it?"  
"I don't know…" Muttered Troy. "I can just…see basketballs….And you blowing a whistle."  
"Yeah…I'm the coach of the school team." His dad smiled, proudly. "We just won the championship, son. You scored the winning basket." Troy blinked, confused.  
"I play?" His dad nodded again.  
"You're the best captain East High has ever seen…"  
"That's enough Jack!" Snapped his mother. "You have to let him remember on his own." She looked down at Troy again, stroking some hair away from his eyes. "Someone's coming to see you later. Someone else from the accident." Troy's eyes widened.  
"If you're not sure, we can tell her to come another time." His dad said, but Troy nodded.  
"If they'll be able to help me, then I don't mind."

A few hours later, Kelsi had woken up, and while her and Troy were eating their dinner, a nurse opened the door, and then wheeled a girl in, in a wheelchair. It had been decorated with pink streamers, and had pink stickers covering it. Troy took a second to look at her, trying to work out who it was, before Kelsi spoke.  
"Sharpay!" Gasped Kelsi, tears of happiness in her eyes. She had mentioned several times how she was worried about her.  
"Troy, Kelsi, I'm so pleased that you're both okay!" She smiled. "I wasn't going to come up until Ryan was awake, but when I heard both of you were awake and remembering things, I just thought I should come up and see you." As Sharpay and Kelsi talked about Ryan, Troy felt himself zoning out again.  
Having been worrying so much about Kelsi, Troy had forgotten to check his phone to see if he could get a signal. But even then, he needed to find people, to assess the damage, and to prepare himself for the worst. He was feeling faint, but he was determined to find all his friends before anyone got seriously hurt. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, and heard it beeping faintly, and saw the one bar of battery he had left. Quickly he typed in '911', and waited for it to ring. It did for a second, before the battery cut out.  
"Shit!" Shouted Troy loudly, throwing his phone angrily into the darkness. It was down to him now, until the sun came up and people saw the accident, or until the truck driver coming in the opposite direction admitted the accident was partly his fault. He was about to continue down the hill to see if anyone, namely Gabriella, had rolled down, but he heard 'HELP!!' coming from the other direction. He staggered towards the voice, and found Sharpay lying there, blood from her cut face tinting her blonde hair. A piece of metal lay across her legs, and Troy tried not to look at the deep cut in her leg.  
"Sharpay." He smiled. "Are you okay?"  
"My...My legs...I-I dunno...I can't feel them!!" She was sobbing and panicking.  
"Sharpay I'm sure you're fine, you're just panicking, okay?" He sniffed. "Being your melodramatic self." Sharpay tried to laugh at that, but it just turned into a sob.  
"I can't move, so you NEED to find the others for us, okay! Especially Ryan! You know that…Not everyone might be okay…But you have to stay strong." Troy nodded weakly, and hugged Sharpay.  
"Are you SURE you're going to be okay!" He said. Although Sharpay said she would be, Troy didn't want to leave her like that. With all his weight he had left, he lifted the sheet of metal from her legs, and Sharpay used her hands to slide out.

Troy blinked a few times when he heard his name. Sharpay was sitting by him in her wheelchair.  
"He sometimes zones out like that...I think he might be remembering stuff." Said Kelsi. Sharpay nodded, and Troy looked down at her.  
"Wh-what is it?" He asked.  
"Do...Do you remember when you helped me? And untrapped my legs?" Troy nodded. "If it wasn't for you, I could've died...It would've cut off my circulation." Troy nodded.  
"B-but how are you now? How long are you in the wheelchair?" Sharpay took a deep breath, but still she couldn't stop herself crying.  
"It's permanent." She said in a breath. "I'll never….d-dance again..." Troy leaned over and hugged her, letting her cry onto his shoulder, and Kelsi sat in shock for a few seconds. Troy had learnt from Kelsi that singing, acting and dancing were Sharpay's passions.  
"You'll be okay Shar..." Whispered Kelsi. "You've got us back now..."  
"It'll be okay. Really." Sharpay sniffed. "Daddys getting me a pink wheelchair made. Customised of course." She wiped her eyes. "I…I don't know what I'm going to do about college now though, I really don't feel up to going. Maybe….work on the technical side of things?"  
"I'll help you, Shar." Said Kelsi, softly. Sharpay smiled gently.  
"I should…Get back downstairs to Ryan." She said, turning her wheels in the other direction. "If I hear anything changes with him, I'll let you know." They both nodded, and watched as Sharpay left.


	4. Chapter 4

**In The Blink Of An Eye**

**Chapter 4**

Troy sat up in the hospital bed with a sudden jolt, and looked around him in a panic, not able to work out where he was at first. When he remembered he was in the hospital, he let out a sigh of relief. He looked over at the neon clock on the wall. It was 4am. Looking over, he saw Kelsi fast asleep on her side. There had been no word yet on how Ryan was, and worrying about him had exhausted her.  
"Kelsi?" Troy whispered, trying to get her attention, but there was no waking her. Troy looked at her for a while to make sure she was okay, and she was. Lying back down, Troy turned on his side away from Kelsi, and tried to get back to sleep, hoping to dream of Gabriella.

Continuing on his quest, he carefully slid down the hill a little more into a valley opening, hoping to find some of his friends down there.  
"Hello??" Said a voice, stumbling along. Troy looked down, and hobbled over to the figure.  
"Taylor, you're okay!" Taylor looked at him confused.  
"Troy?" She questioned, cautiously. He nodded, and Taylor smiled, giving Troy a tight hug. "I thought I'd lost you all! Have you found the others?" Troy bit his lip, and  
shook his head.  
"Not all of them." He said, pulling away. "I've found Kelsi and Sharpay."  
"Not Gabriella? Or Chad? He was driving!" Asked Taylor, worried. Troy shook his head, and sat on the grass, carefully pulling Taylor down to sit with him. He looked up at the sky, and saw the sky was a soft orange colour - the sun was coming up. He was unsure how many hours had passed since the accident, but knew that it would only be a matter of time before people saw the wreckage on the ground.  
"Sharpay can't feel her legs, and Kelsi's pretty burned. They should be okay though. I just haven't found any of the others yet." Troy looked over at Taylor, but she didn't look up from her lap. Troy sighed, and put his arm around her shoulders, figuring she was in shock, and taking all this in.  
"You stay here." He said, looking at her. Taylor paused for a second, looking confused again.  
"I'll…go and see if I can help the others." She said, standing up, and going in the opposite direction. Troy shrugged, and figured she'd be okay on her own as there didn't seem to be any injuries other than the scratches on her face. It meant there could be someone sitting with the people he found, while he carried on finding others. _'I'll find them all'_ he told himself, wiping the sweat from his eyes, and carrying on down the hill.

Troy felt himself being shook awake gently.  
"Troy…You've got a visitor…" Said the nurse standing by his bed. "I can ask her to wait if you want…"  
"N-no it's okay." Troy murmured. "I'm awake…" He carefully sat up in his bed, and blinked a few times to focus on the room. It was when he opened his eyes for the third time that Troy saw a dark-skinned girl standing next to the nurse.  
"Taylor?" He asked gently. Taylor looked at the nurse nervously, who nodded at her.  
"Can you…tell him?" She asked the nurse, quietly. Troy was confused. From what he remembered about Taylor, she was loud, and opinionated. He never dreamt in a million years Taylor would sound so tamed and…scared.  
"Troy…You need to try and annunciate your words for Taylor. She um…She can't hear anything. She has to lip read." He looked from the nurse to Taylor, and stared at her.  
"You're deaf?" He asked, confused. Taylor nodded, and sat on the chair next to the bed.  
"If everything's okay in here, I'll just be outside." Troy nodded, and looked back at Taylor.  
"When the engine exploded…" Taylor began slowly. "My head was near it. The loud noise ruptured something in my ears."  
"Is it permanent?" He asked again. Taylor paused, trying to work out what he said, and then nodded. "Why didn't you tell me after the accident?"  
"You had to find Gabriella and Chad." She sniffed. "I didn't want you worrying about me."  
"I guess you weren't just ignoring me when you didn't answer me then." Troy said slowly, and Taylor laughed.  
"Taylor? Is that you?" Troy looked over to see Kelsi stirring awake. Taylor of course, hadn't heard her, so Troy pointed over to Kelsi.  
"Um Kelsi, she can't hear you, so she has to be looking at you." Explained Troy. Kelsi looked upset at this, but nodded.  
"I'll be okay eventually." Said Taylor, suddenly. "I might not be able to hear, but I've always wanted to learn sign language. And at least I'm alive."  
"Is anyone not?" Troy's voice shook as he asked, but by then Taylor had turned her head to speak to Kelsi. Kelsi looked over at him when he asked, but chose not to ask herself, because she knew neither of them really wanted to know the answer.

Taylor took turns between talking to Kelsi and Troy, before her parents came to pick her up. They were taking her to her sign language class, which they were also attending to make things easier on her.  
"We'll do it to." Decided Troy, as Taylor left. "Once we're all better, we'll all take lessons to help Taylor out." Kelsi nodded, and they both fell silent.  
"…Do you really want to know?" Asked Kelsi, all of a sudden. Troy looked at her confused.  
"Know what?" He asked.  
"How the others are….Chad, Gabriella…."  
"Why wouldn't I?!" Troy sat up, looking at her angrily. How could she even suggest that he didn't want to know!  
"I don't mean like that." She said. "…But what if the reason no-ones telling us, is because it's bad news? They didn't want me to know about Ryan, after all. And if they were okay--"  
"Gabriella will be okay." Troy wiped his eyes, not even letting the thought cross his mind. "She'll be at home resting, or in the hospital somewhere. Chad too." Kelsi nodded.  
"…Sorry I brought it up." She whispered, turning away from him to go back to sleep.

Just before visiting hours were over, there was a knock on Troy and Kelsi's door.  
"Um….hey…Can I come in?" Kelsi looked up first, as Troy was half asleep. She smiled.  
"Chad, you're okay…" Troy's head shot up at that, and his eyes widened.  
"Dude! It's you!" Troy's face instantly lit up, but he saw that Chad's didn't do the same. Instead, Chad burst into tears, falling face down into Troy's blankets.  
"It's my fault!" He sobbed, his whole body shaking. While Troy tried to calm him down, he blanked out again.

As Troy continued on his quest to find Chad, Troy and Gabriella, he saw a figure stumbling along, similar to him. Troy was wary at first, in case it was a murderer or something, but then he heard a familiar voice.  
"Chad!" Troy called, rushing over to him. Chad limped along towards Troy, and Troy could see he was distraught.  
"Tr-Troy you're okay.." He stuttered, visibly shaking. "The…the truck and…and I didn't know what to do, I'm sorry man I…I'm so sorry I…" Chad stuttered on, but Troy pulled him into a hug.  
"Chad, you've gotta calm down, dude. Take deep breaths."  
"No I…Taylor! Where…"  
"She's okay." Said Troy, gently. "She's waiting with Sharpay and Kelsi. She's fine. She's okay." He repeated, and Chad ran a hand through his hair.  
"Is anyone--"  
"No. They're fine." Troy interrupted. "I'm looking for Ryan and Gabriella now. You go and sit with Taylor."  
"No. N-no, I have to help.."  
"Chad, you're in shock, you need to sit down and try and--"  
"I WANT TO HELP, TROY! THIS IS MY FAULT! I WANTED TO DRIVE! I INSISTED ON NOT TURNING BACK!" Chad let out a sob, and Troy patted him on the back.  
"Okay…Okay you can help. But if you start feeling ill…"  
"I know. Then I'll go and see nurse Taylor." He sniffed. "Normal circumstances….wouldn't mind that." Troy smiled at the slight glimmer of his old friend, and the two carried on walking.

"Troy?" Troy looked down, and saw Chad looking up at him, rubbing his eyes. "…You did good that day, man."  
"Just did what anyone would've." He said, patting his back.  
"No…You're more of a man than I am." Chad sniffed, looking at the floor. "…I'm seeing a psychiatrist…to help me through it all, yknow? All…the guilt." He looked up at Troy again. "Dude, I made Taylor deaf…"  
"It could've happened at any time, Chad." Comforted Kelsi, reaching out of her bed to pat his arm.  
"…Sharpay can't live her dream because I've put her in a fucking wheelchair…  
"She's told us she's okay with that. Don't worry about it." Troy tried his best to comfort him.  
"And then….dude I'm sorry." Chad let out another sob. "Dude I'm so FUCKING SORRY!"  
"It's not your fault, Chad. It's not your fault!"  
"IT IS!" He pushed Troy away. "YOU SHOULDN'T WANT ME HERE! AFTER WHAT HAPPENED--" Troy looked confused.  
"Chad?"  
"You know--" They got interrupted by a nurse rushing in.

"Kelsi?" She looked up, suddenly scared by the urgency in the nurse's voice.  
"What??"  
"There's….been some problems downstairs. We're doing the best we can with Ryan--"  
"What's wrong??" Troy interrupted, trying to put Chad's outburst at the back of his mind, and be there for Kelsi.  
"We're trying to stabilise him, but--"  
"I'm going down there." Troy said, getting out of bed quickly. He started lowering the bars to Kelsi's bed, but the nurse stopped him.  
"Troy, Kelsi's too weak to walk at the moment. The burns are still severe--"  
"But…" Began Kelsi.  
"No. I don't want you getting hurt, Kels. You stay here. I'll be down there in your place." Said Troy. He looked around at Chad. "You coming?" But Chad, after his last outburst, had ran out the room as soon as he heard Ryan was worsening. Troy heard him crying somewhere, but couldn't listen to that. He turned to the nurse. "Let's go."


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Some people were saying that it was difficult to differentiate between what's happening now, and what Troy is dreaming or remembering, so I tried to make it a little bit more obvious this time. Hope it helped

* * *

**

In The Blink Of An Eye

**Chapter 4**

Troy followed the nurse down several floors, and through a winding corridor before he saw the sign on the door saying 'Intensive Care'  
"This is the place." The nurse explained. "Troy, I'm not sure if you should be out of bed yet…"  
"I have amnesia." He said, preparing himself for what he was going to see. "I'm not ill." The nurse nodded, and opened the door. The Evans family looked up scared at the door, and Sharpay wheeled herself over to Troy.  
"T-Troy.." Her voice was breaking down, and it was clear she had been crying for a few hours. Troy bent down and hugged her.  
"Hey, shh." He whispered. "He'll be okay. He's not gonna leave you out in the cold."  
"He's slipped back into the coma." She sobbed. "They thought he was coming round but…then he crashed a-and….they said that his brain wasn't getting enough oxygen." She looked away. "Even if he is still alive…The damage….it might be permanent." Troy frowned, not wanting to tell Kelsi.  
"He'll be okay." Troy repeated. He saw a doctor coming out of Ryan's room, and saw Mr and Mrs Evans stand up quickly.  
"Any news?" Mr Evans said quickly, holding onto his wife.  
"You can go back in but…I'm not making any promises. We really are doing the best we can for Ryan, but his brain went without oxygen for quite some time…"  
"I don't wanna hear this. He'll be fine." Snapped Troy, grabbing the handles of Sharpay's wheelchair, and pushing her into the room where Ryan lay. Mr and Mrs Evans remained outside, wanting to give them some time alone with Ryan.

"He looks so lifeless…" Sharpay murmured, lifting a hand to squeeze his hand. "He doesn't look like my brother at all."  
"Yeah, but that's because he doesn't have a hat." Said Troy, laughing softly. Sharpay looked over at him.  
"You remember him wearing hats?" She asked, confused. Troy nodded.  
"That's not all I remember."

_Troy drifted back into his memory. By now, the sun was shining, and he had to cover his face with his hand to see around him. He had not heard any traffic on the road yet, but kept telling himself that it was only a matter of time before they were found. Chad walked alongside him, silent except for the occasional sniffle, or attempt at a joke to keep their spirits up.  
"T-Troy.." He managed to say eventually."…What if we don't find her or Ryan?" Troy stayed silent, blinking a few times to try and hold back the tears.  
"We will." He said, in a hoarse voice. He was feeling weaker and weaker, but was forcing himself to stay conscious until he found Gabriella, at least.  
"Troy, look!" Chad called, interrupting his train of thought. They saw a shape in the distance, and ran down to it.  
"Ryan!" Said Chad, shaking him. He wasn't answering. Troy's eyes flew open, and he took off his jacket, propping Ryan's head up.  
"We've gotta do this for Kelsi...I PROMISED her I'd do this!!" He said. Chad nodded, as Troy started giving Ryan mouth-to-mouth. In the back of his mind he was silently thanking Gabriella for making him take first aid training with her. Ryan wasn't waking up, but Chad leaned down to Ryan's chest.  
"His hearts still beating, but his breathing is really shallow." Troy nodded, and checked his pockets. He sighed with relief when he found Ryan's phone. The screen was a little scratched, and the phone itself dented, but it was still switched on, with two bars of signal.  
"Chad…Call 911...And then stay with Ryan." He said. Chad looked alarmed. "You are still helping, I need someone to sit with Ryan until an ambulance comes for us." Chad sighed, looked down at Ryan, and nodded.  
"If you find her...L-let me know." Chad muttered. Troy nodded too, and carried on._

"I did all I could, Sharpay." Said Troy, shaking his head and looking up at her. "But Ryan saved us all. He was the only one of us with a phone that was working." Sharpay smiled slightly.  
"Really?" Troy nodded.  
"If it wasn't for him…things could have been a lot worse." He said, looking back at Ryan. The steady beeping of the heart monitor was starting to give him a headache, but he didn't want to say anything to Sharpay. They sat silent for a while.  
"He's the real star of the family." Sharpay said eventually. "Even before the accident, I mean. He's always been the best singer, the best dancer… I was just too stupid to notice him."  
"You're not stupid." Said Troy, softly. "You're just…over-confident?" Sharpay smiled slightly.  
"Thanks Troy. You always seem to know how to cheer a girl up. No wonder Gabriella loved you."  
"Loved?"  
"…I mean loves." Said Sharpay, quickly. To avoid any awkwardness, she stroked Ryan's hand again. "He'll be the star on Broadway. Not me. He deserves it more than me anyway." Troy was about to say something comforting, when a murmuring was heard from the bed. Troy's eyes flew wide, and he stood up.  
"Ryan??"  
"Mmm…" He heard coming from Ryan's lips. Sharpay's eyes filled with happy tears.  
"Ryan, honey? It's Sharpay…Are you planning on staying awake this time?" She laughed, sniffing.  
"Shar…" He muttered, his eyes fluttering open. He looked around confused, and whimpered and muttered, scared.  
"Shh, brother…" Sharpay whispered to him.  
"I'll get the doctor." Said Troy, rushing outside to find one of Ryan's doctors.

Minutes later, Troy ran into the room, followed by an array of doctors, as well as Ryan and Sharpay's parents.  
"Mo…Mom…" He muttered. The doctor took a note of his speech, and wrote it down.  
"I'm here, duckie." She sobbed, sitting the other side to Sharpay.  
"We're all here. We're just glad you're okay." Smiled Sharpay. Ryan turned his head, and smiled at Sharpay.  
"Shar…" He said softly. "Why are you…in a wheelchair…"  
"The accident." She said, softly. "I can't walk, but that doesn't matter. All that matters is that you're alright." Sharpay wiped her eyes. "I'm just gonna go and get you some magazines and stuff from the other patients, okay?" Ryan nodded, and turned to his mother.  
"Mom.." He smiled, moving his hand to squeeze hers.  
"Ryan, I need to ask you a few questions." Said the doctor. He lifted his hand in the air. "How many fingers am I holding up."  
"Three." Ryan said, slowly.  
"Okay. Do you know who these people are?" The doctor asked.  
"Yeah that…there's Troy…Mom…Dad…" He nodded to everyone as he looked around the bed. Then, he looked down at his hand, and blinked confused a few time. "When…When did I put my hand there…"  
"You…don't remember?" Asked Troy, confused, and Ryan shook his head. Scared, Ryan changed the subject.  
"Where's Kelsi? Is she okay? Why isn't she here…"  
"She's upstairs in a room with me, don't worry." Said Troy, smiling. "She was a little burnt, but she's healing pretty well. She's been asking after you, she'll come and see you as soon as she's allowed." Ryan nodded, and the doctor continued his questions. After another ten minutes or so, the doctors left, and Troy and the Evans' sat talking together.  
"I'm back!" Smiled Sharpay, wheeling herself over to Ryan's bed. "Couldn't find anything interesting sorry." Ryan smiled at her, then looked at her puzzled again.  
"Sharpay…Why are you in a wheelchair?" Everyone looked at Ryan for asking the question.  
"I just…told you." Sharpay said slowly, taken aback.  
"What? No you didn't, I'd remember something like that…" Suddenly, Ryan looked around. "And where's Kelsi? Why isn't she here? Did something happen to her?!" Mr Evans and Troy looked at each other, alarmed, and as Mrs. Evans and Sharpay explained to Ryan again, they left to go and find one of Ryan's doctors.

"This is, in no way, a confirmed diagnosis, you understand. These could be a few isolated incidents, as he's only just woke up." Said the doctor, after listening to both Mr Evans and Troy. "But Ryan seems to be suffering from anterograde amnesia."  
"Amnesia?" Asked Troy, confused. "But…I've got amnesia, I don't have to keep asking questions…"  
"This is a different type of amnesia. It affects Ryan's short term memory. In short, it makes it very difficult for him to remember anything past a few minutes."  
"But he's a singer and a dancer!" Called out Mr. Evans. "He needs to remember things! Isn't there something that can be done!"  
"I'm afraid that, if this is a permanent thing, then there is nothing we can do. There's very little known about the process of storing memories. It will be very difficult for Ryan to remember songs, or dance routines, unless they are taught to him repetitively. Eventually they may go into his memory, but he will have no recollection of learning them."  
"What about his girlfriend, from before the accident? Will he remember her?" Asked Troy, awkwardly. The doctor nodded.  
"He will, but he won't remember seeing her. She could walk into a room, and he'll act like he's seeing her for the first time in years." Troy nodded, slowly, and turned to Mr. Evans.  
"Look I'm…sure you want to be alone with him so…I'll go and tell Kelsi what's going on."  
"Thanks, son." Said Mr Evans, tiredly. "You're a good kid. You don't deserve anything that's happened."  
"Thanks." Troy smiled weakly, before leaving to go and tell Kelsi the news.

"…The main thing is, he's okay." Troy was sitting on the end of Kelsi's bed, just finishing up telling her what had been wrong with Ryan.  
"But he won't be able to dance again." She sniffed. "His Broadway offer…He won't be able to take it up now. They won't want someone they have to teach a routine to a million times before they remember it…"  
"I know. But remember what the doctor said, they're not sure, and even if they are, it might not even be permanent. I think he's got more things to worry about right now than Broadway, anyway."  
"I…I know." Sniffed Kelsi. "I uh…spoke to my doctor today. About how I want to go down and see Ryan now he's awake. He said most of my burns are healing really well now, and that I might be ready to get up and walk around in the next day or so."  
"That's great!" Smiled Troy.  
"Yeah. Especially if he really will remember me." Said Kelsi, smiling. She paused for a while, and frowned. "…He won't be able to learn sign language with us now, will he."  
"Well…Taylor can lip read. It'll be fine." Said Troy, eventually. "And I'm sure you have the patience to teach him the same thing over and over again. Come on, you had the patience to teach me and Gabriella!" Kelsi smiled.  
"…Will you come with me when I can go and see him?" Troy smiled, and nodded.  
"Of course I will."


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Don't own the lyrics. Also, I have a poll on my user profile about which fanfic I should write next. Pick a summary you like the best, and I'll write it. Some are oneshots, some are longer. Finally, apologies for this chapter. There'll be one more chapter after this which'll be the epilogue. ****

* * *

****In The Blink Of An Eye  
****Chapter 5**

It had been nearly a week since Ryan had woke up, and Troy was preparing Kelsi for visiting him the first time. Chad had not been by since his outburst, but Taylor and Sharpay had been by from time to time. Troy was slowly gaining all his memories back, and now remembered the Twinkle Towne musical, and their summer at Lava Springs. However, he still couldn't remember anything about seeing Gabriella at the accident.  
"You will be okay seeing Ryan, won't you?" Asked Troy to the curtain around Kelsi's bed. She was getting dressed in some clothes Taylor had brought by for her, and Sharpay had just left after doing her hair.  
"Yeah…I mean, I know it'll be hard…but he's still the same Ryan. He remembers everything from when we were together he just…won't remember seeing me ever again." She fell silent for a while, and Troy felt for her. He knew this was the one thing that was upsetting her more than anything.  
"But he'll remember he loves you. That's the important part." He said, comfortingly. "And he might eventually get better, you know that."  
"I know." She replied, sniffing. "Well…I'm ready." Kelsi pulled back the curtain nervously, and smiled. "How do I look?" Kelsi had a pair of jeans on, and a long sleeved white sweater to cover the burns. Her hair hung loose down her back, and Sharpay had done an amazing job of straightening it. Troy applauded her look as she put on her glasses to complete the look.  
"You look great, he'll love it." Troy said. "Come on, let's go."

Troy lead Kelsi down to the intensive care unit, and pushed her forward as they reached Ryan's room.  
"You go in first." He encouraged her. Kelsi nodded, and taking a deep breath, she opened the door. Ryan looked over at the sound of the door opening, and gasped, happily, and a smile spread across his face.  
"Kelsi!" He said. Tears filled her eyes, and she ran over to him, and gave him a hug.  
"I was so scared, Ryan…" She sniffed. "I didn't know where you were, no-one would tell me! If Troy hadn't…"  
"It doesn't matter…" He said, stroking her hair. "You're here now." He paused to take another look at her. "You look…amazing." She smiled.  
"That's thanks to Sharpay and Taylor. Wanted to make me look nice for you." She smiled shyly.  
"You didn't have to do that." Ryan said, cupping her cheek. "Last time I remember seeing you, at school on the last day…you looked amazing then." Kelsi blushed, as Troy watched from the door. He started tearing up a little, so approached the bed.  
"Hey Ry." He said. Ryan looked up.  
"Troy, it's been ages! Are you okay? Did you get hurt?" Kelsi looked over at Troy sadly, and he pat his back.  
"Yeah I'm okay." He said. "Kelsi, I'm gonna head back up, okay? Getting a headache, and I'm sure you two want some time alone."  
"Okay Troy." Kelsi smiled. "I'll see you up there later." Troy nodded, and left.

Once he got up to his and Kelsi's room, he wiped his eyes angrily. Why couldn't he remember Gabriella, and why hadn't she been to see him. He kicked the wall angrily. Did she not care? Or was she lying unconscious in the hospital somewhere, and no-one wanted to tell him. He kicked the wall again, then took a deep breath. He needed to calm down, and he knew it. Getting angry at himself for not remembering what happened was not going to help him. He looked over at Kelsi's bed, and found her iPod lying there. Knowing she wouldn't mind, he grabbed it off of her bed, and pushed the earphones into his ears. He scrolled through, and laughed when he found that most of the songs were from musicals, some of which he'd never heard of before. Giving them the benefit of the doubt, he hit the 'Shuffle Songs' button, and clicked through the songs, hoping to find one he liked. He was just about to give up when a slow song started, and Troy sunk back into his pillow. He listened carefully to the words, and tears built up in his eyes.

But you will live 'ponine  
Dear god above  
If I could heal your wounds  
With words of love  
Just hold me now and let it be  
Shelter me, comfort me.  
You would live a hundred years  
If I could show you how  
I won't desert you now  
The rain can't hurt me now  
This rain will wash away what's past  
And you will keep me safe  
And you will keep me close  
I'll sleep in your embrace at last  
The rain that brings you here  
Is heaven blessed  
Skies begin to clear  
And I'm at rest  
A breath away from where you are  
I've come home from so far  
Hush-a-bye dear Eponine  
You wont feel any pain  
A little fall of rain  
Can hardly hurt you now  
I'm here  
That's all I need to know  
I'll stay with you til you are sleeping  
And rain will make the flowers grow…

_"Gabriella…" Troy was walking along, wiping his eyes to get rid of the sweat in them. It had been about quarter of an hour since he had found Ryan, and he didn't know how far from the wreck he was now. "GABRIELLA!" He called out again, but still there was no reply. Walking a little further, Troy couldn't help but sob. He knew everyone else was okay, but still he wouldn't rest until he found Gabriella. He stood silent for a second, and suddenly heard someone, groaning weakly. Stumbling over, he pushed a car seat away that was over the figure  
_"_Gabriella!" He sobbed, cupping her cheek  
__"Troy..." She smiled, trying to reach out for his hand. "You're okay..."  
"So are you!!" Grinned Troy, kissing her head. "Gabi, you're okay." Her eyes glanced down, and Troy followed her eyes. There was a piece of metal in her side, and it had scratched down her, creating a deep cut. "N-no Gabriella, you'll be okay...Shar…Sharpay's got the same, and she's fine, I promise." Gabriella stared silently forward.  
"Troy, I didn't want to die like this!!" She sobbed, grabbing Troy's hand weakly. Tears were rolling down her tired cheeks, and Troy squeezed her hand. "I wanted to go to college, then graduate! Then I wanted to marry you Troy…God, you're the only one I've ever wanted. And kids…Troy I wanted us to have…children, a house…." She started coughing after her outburst, and Troy saw she was coughing up blood.  
"No Gabriella, you're going to be fine!" He was crying, trying to keep her alive. "You know, I don't want to wait, okay honey? I want to marry you, okay? I'm proposing to you right now, because I love you so much, and I want you to believe as much as I do that you're going to be alright, okay? And when you're ready, we'll get that house, and Gabriella…our children are going to be the most beautiful things in the world. They'll look just like you, how can they be anything but gorgeous…" Gabriella shook her head, her eyes half closing. "Come on Gabriella! Stay awake for me baby…"  
"I can't, Troy. It's so hard…" She whispered weakly. "Tell...Tell my mom that I love her, and that I'm sorry for letting her down… Sorry for letting you down, Troy… I…I just can't….I'm sorry…I love you….so much."  
"No Gabriella, stop talking like that!"  
_"_Be…Be happy Troy…" She coughed, her eyelids growing heavier. "Please…be happy….for me…" Troy heard sirens.  
_"_No Gabriella, listen! The ambulance is here! You'll be okay!" But Gabriella had closed her eyes, and Troy felt her weak grip on his hand loosen even more. "Gabriella?" He shook her vigorously, but she wasn't moving. He tried mouth to mouth and every other thing he knew, every other thing that Gabriella had taught him, but she wouldn't wake up. "Gabriella!" He screamed. "Please wake up! We have to get married! We're going to grow old together, you're not going to die like this!" Suddenly, Troy felt a strong hand on his shoulder.  
"Sir, we need to get you checked out--"  
_"_No, no! Take care of her!" Troy screamed, shaking off the paramedic who was standing over him.  
_"_We will, but we need to see to you first."  
_"_No!" He screamed again, before he started running. The paramedic tried to catch up to him, but Troy was too fast. He could hear his heart beating in his ears, just before he stumbled forward, and hit his head on hard rock. The last thing he remembered from that night was blacking out._

"Troy?" A gentle voice said, which woke Troy immediately from his dream. Troy sat up, and blinked a few times at the person standing next to his bed. He wiped his wet eyes.  
"….Gabriella?" She nodded.  
"I had to come and see you." She smiled slightly. "Are you okay?"  
"I was so scared I'd lost you." He sobbed. "Are YOU okay? Did they take care of you?"  
"They came to me first like you told them to." She smiled. "They took good care of me, don't worry. Just a few scratches. I'm okay now."  
"Have you seen the others? Taylor, she--"  
"I know, Troy." She interrupted him. "They'll be okay. And so will you be."  
"Gabriella…" He said weakly. "Don't ever scare me like that again, okay? I don't think I could ever bear losing you, it'd kill me."  
"You'll never lose me." She said, smiling sadly. "Whatever happens, I'm going to be there. In here." She pointed towards her heart. "But…Do you remember what I said to you that night?"  
"Every word." He sniffed. "I'm always hanging on your every word, you know that."  
"Then you'll remember that I told you that I want you to be happy, whatever happens. Your happiness is the most important thing to me, Troy."  
"If anything did happen to you, I'd never be happy again."  
"Don't say that. Please." Troy saw Gabriella's eyes fill with tears, and when she blinked, they rolled down her cheeks. "I want you to live. I want you to move on, and fall in love again. I don't want you living in the past…"  
"Gabriella…" He sobbed into his hands. "I'm so glad you're here."  
"Troy?" He heard, and looked up.

"Gabriella?" He sniffed.  
"No…It's me..Kelsi…" She sat on the edge of his bed. "Are you okay?"  
"Where did she go?" He sniffed. "Gabriella where…where is she?"  
"Troy, she wasn't here…"  
"No, no she was." He got out of his bed. "You must of just missed her."  
"I didn't, Troy."  
"You did! She was standing right there! Hold on, I'll just get one of the nurses, they would have seen her…"  
"Troy!" Kelsi held onto Troy's shoulders, and Troy saw her eyes filling with tears, just as Gabriella's had done. "You have to listen to me."  
"No Kelsi, wait--"  
"Gabriella died, Troy." Kelsi sobbed. "The doctors just told me and Ryan that she was dead at the scene of the accident. There was nothing they could do. She was already gone."


	7. Chapter 7

**In The Blink Of An Eye**

**Epilogue**

Ten years had passed since the accident, and Troy was preparing himself for the anniversary, as he did every year. He had got the day off work as usual, and was standing in the kitchen, preparing breakfast.  
"Troy, are you sure about this?" Said a voice entering the kitchen. "I mean, can she handle it?"  
"Look, if I didn't think she could, I wouldn't even be suggesting it. I just think it's time." Said Troy softly, as he turned the bacon over. The voice continued.  
"But she's very sensitive…Something like this…I don't know…"  
"She'll be fine, Sharpay." Said Troy, turning off the gas, and turning to face her. He knelt down in front of her wheelchair, and gave her a gentle hug. "We don't have to explain everything to her…I just think she should understand a little." Sharpay bit her lip.  
"Alright…" She murmured. "But if she gets upset--"  
"You'll murder me. I know." He smiled, dishing the food onto three plates, and setting them on the table. "You get yourself comfortable, I'll go and get her." Sharpay nodded, and wheeled herself over to the kitchen table, as Troy went upstairs.

Troy walked quietly to the bedroom door he was looking for, and knocked.  
"You awake?" He said. There was no answer for a while, but then he heard giggling. Grinning, Troy pushed the door open, and sat at the end of the bed. He looked at the lump under the bed covers, and let out a loud sigh. "Oh well, I guess there's no-one in here." He said, walking around to the side of the bed. "I guess no-one wants to spend the day with me. That's a shame…Someone was going to get ice cream…"  
"Ice cream!" He heard the lump in the bed squeal, before he was jumped on by a five year old. "I get ice cream now daddy?" Troy laughed, and hugged the little girl.  
"Yeah you do, later. I've cooked breakfast so hurry up and get dressed before it gets cold. Then me and mommy are going to take you to visit something very special, okay?" The little girl nodded.  
"Will I get to see Uncle Lucas and Auntie Kelsi??" Troy nodded, and laughed again as the little girl jumped up and down excited.  
"And Auntie Taylor, and Uncle Chad." He said. "But I want you to give me a big hug and a kiss first, okay?" The little girl nodded, and climbed into Troy's lap, and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing his cheek.  
"Love you daddy." She smiled. He stroked her hair.  
"Love you too, Gabi." He kissed her nose, then left her to get dressed.

As soon as everything had settled down after accident, Sharpay got straight to work, trying to find jobs she could do in the performing arts business. There was no way she was going to sacrifice her dream. She decided not to go to college in the end, and instead took up a job at a prestigious private drama school, teaching drama and singing. She was also in charge of the talent agency connected to the school, so when she wasn't teaching children, she was finding them auditions and opportunities to break into the industry.

Troy took a long while after the accident to get back to normal. Though his memory was back, he was heartbroken, and there was a period of six months where he refused to leave the house, not wanting to face anyone. His room was like a shrine to Gabriella, with photos of her everywhere, and the DVD of their Twinkle Towne performance was a permanent soundtrack in the house. Slowly, Troy began going out again, going to basketball games with Chad, and Sharpay dragging him to the theatre to see shows. Slowly, his and Sharpay's relationship grew, and Troy soon found himself moving out of his parents house, and in with Sharpay. They bought the house that the Montez family had lived in, as soon after the accident, Mrs. Montez had left the area to try and rebuild her life. Troy soon took up basketball again, and eventually managed to get spotted by the Albuquerque Thunderbirds, and slowly worked his way up to become captain of the team, leading them to several championship victories from the slump they had been in. Other teams showed an interest, but Troy didn't want to move away from Albuquerque, and the memory of Gabriella. After several years of living together, Sharpay found herself pregnant with their first child, and Troy couldn't be prouder.

The plan was the same as every year. First the six of them would meet up for lunch. As Troy and Sharpay neared the restaurant, they saw that Taylor and Chad were already there.  
"Hey guys." Said Chad, quietly. Troy smiled at him, and nodded.  
"Uncle Chad!!" Little Gabriella giggled, and she jumped into his arms. Chad smiled, and wrapped his arms around her.  
"Wow, you're getting so big! You'll be as tall as me one day!" He laughed, twirling her around in his arms, narrowly missing a waiter walking past, who glared at him. Taylor was sitting staring into space, when Chad tapped her shoulder, and motioned to Troy and Sharpay.  
"Hey, sorry, was miles away." She laughed. Sharpay nodded.  
"How are you?" She signed to Taylor. Taylor nodded, and signed back that she was good. As promised, as soon as everyone was out of hospital, they had all tried their best to learn sign language, especially Chad. Troy and Sharpay had also enrolled Gabriella in lessons, who was a quick learner, and already knew a few small words and phrases.

Chad was never quite the same after the accident. He withdrew into himself so much, that for a year or two, he was on anti-depressants. His confidence had never returned, and not only had he not driven since the crash, he also hadn't played basketball. After Troy's father had retired from coaching the East High Wildcats, Chad took the job, and had managed to lead his teams into winning the championship every year since he joined. One of the perks of his job was that he was working with Taylor every day.

Taylor, after losing her hearing, was even more determined to go to college, and get her degrees. But the more she thought about it, the less she wanted to go into law like she had planned. She ended up studying to become a teacher, and majored in English. As soon as she was qualified, she applied for a job at East High, who were more than happy to take her on. Not only was she teaching English, but she also provided learning support for hearing impaired or deaf students, and had aided in the creation of the school's first sign language club. It wasn't long after Taylor started working there that Chad had proposed to her, in fluent sign language, which Taylor was awe-struck by. They were married a year later, and it was common knowledge that they were trying for a baby.  
"So, any luck yet?" Laughed Troy. "I don't see a mini Chad anywhere yet, thankfully!"  
"Ah see, that's where you're wrong man." Smiled Chad. "We found out a few days ago. I would've told you sooner but Taylor wanted to wait until today." Hearing Sharpay squeal and hug Taylor, Troy assumed Taylor had just told her the news as well.

"Ow my ears." Troy turned to see Kelsi and Ryan walking into the restaurant, Ryan grinning.  
"Hey Ryan." Said Troy, patting his back. "How you feeling?"  
"You know…Good days, bad days." He said, looking over at Kelsi and squeezing her hand. He looked over at Gabriella, who had crawled onto Sharpay's lap, and was attempting to sign at Taylor. "I see you've brought--" He froze up, staring at her hard, and biting his lip in concentration.  
"Gabriella." Finished Kelsi. Ryan looked at her again and nodded.  
"See what I mean?" Laughed Ryan. "This is sadly, a bad day. But I know what day it is, so that's all that matters, right?"  
"Yeah. It's great to see you both." Said Troy.  
"The doctors told us there's been some good research into anterograde amnesia recently…He might be able to advise Ryan on some experimental treatments." Smiled Kelsi. "Then you'll have the old Ryan back, don't you worry."  
"I like this Ryan. I can borrow money from him and he never remembers." Said Chad, looking over and laughing.  
"Chad Danforth, I can STILL lip read, so take that back right now!" Came the booming voice of Taylor. Chad smiled.  
"Sorry Mrs. Danforth." Chad signed back, getting the blush from Taylor that he had been hoping for.

After Ryan had been allowed out of hospital, Kelsi came round to his house every day to visit him, without exception. There hadn't been a day in the past ten years that Kelsi and Ryan didn't see each other. Kelsi took a community college course in technical theatre, which included producing and directing, and came the top of her class. Although she had offers to work on Broadway daily, she turned them all down in favour of staying close to Ryan, and letting him stay close to his family. She worked with theatre groups all around New Mexico, writing and producing their shows, a lot of which received critical acclaim.

Ryan attempted to lead a normal life as much as possible, but knew it would be hard for him to hold down a job, when he couldn't remember anything. He had recently taken to writing down everything he did, or thought, so that he could read it back, in an attempt at remembering it, and it did help him a little. At his last hospital appointment, as Kelsi was currently explaining to Troy and Chad, the doctor had said that there was an operation that may help Ryan gain more of his short term memory, that over time could lead to a full recovery. It was what him and Kelsi wanted more than anything in the world. Ryan had trouble remembering his and Kelsi's wedding, and at times, couldn't remember the name of their seven year old daughter, Kaci.  
"Are you sure Gabriella should be here? I mean, I know we brought Kaci along last year, but that was because we couldn't find a babysitter…" Said Kelsi.  
"I tried to tell him that, but he won't listen." Said Sharpay, rolling her eyes. Troy shook his head.  
"I need to do this guys. I need her to understand who she was named after." No-one could argue with that, and they sat down for lunch.

As soon as lunch had finished, everyone got back into their cars, with the exception of Chad and Taylor, who had walked to the restaurant, and were instead getting a lift with Kelsi and Ryan.  
"Daddy where are we going??" Asked Gabriella, bouncing up and down in her seat.  
"We'll be there in a minute, Gabi." Troy said, as he parked the car. He got Sharpay's wheelchair out of the back of the car, and brought it round to her door as she slowly eased herself into it. Then he opened the door for Gabriella, and picked her up.  
"Now you have to be a good girl, Gabi." Said Sharpay. She looked at Sharpay and nodded, and the three of them headed down the path. By the time they got there, Ryan, Chad, Taylor and Kelsi were already there. Taylor was shaking, and Chad comfortingly put a hand on her shoulder, while rubbing her back in a clockwise direction.  
"Who wants to go first?" Asked Ryan, as Sharpay and Troy joined the group. They were all silent for a while, before Chad pushed Taylor forward a step. She looked around at the others, and knelt down.  
"Hey, honey." She sniffed, stroking the headstone. "Guess you were right when you said me and Chad were gonna stay together. Don't worry, I'm still keeping my eye on him. He's not even going to have a chance to change this baby into a mini him." She sniffed, placing hers and Chad's flowers carefully on the ground in front. Still shaking, she stood up and moved away, and Chad wrapped his arms around her tightly.  
"Hey Gabs." Said Kelsi, holding onto Ryan's hand as she knelt down. "Miss you so much. I wrote a part a few weeks ago for a play and…my god, you would've been perfect for it." She wiped her eyes. "I'm looking after Ryan. I know how he was like the brother you never had, so I'm gonna look after him for you… And I've told Kaci all about you… She really wishes she could've met you. Sleep well." She placed her flowers down next to Taylor's, and stood up, looking at Troy.

Troy stood silently for a few minutes, before putting Gabriella on the floor.  
"Hey, you wanna do a special job?" He whispered to her. The little girl nodded eagerly, and Troy passed her the flowers. "You wanna put these down with me?" The little girl nodded again as Troy crouched down in front of the grave, his arms around his daughter.  
"Gabriella…Remember I told you how you were named after someone very special, who isn't here anymore?" The girl nodded again. "Well this is where she is… and we come here so we can talk to her, and let her know we're thinking about her." Gabriella looked confused for a moment, then looked at her dad.  
"Can I talk to her?" She asked. Troy looked at Sharpay for her approval.  
"Go on, sweetie." Sharpay smiled. The little girl looked at the name on the stone.  
"Hello Gabriella." She said. "Daddy told me you were a pretty girl, and he showed me your pictures, and you are pretty. Daddy said he wants me to grow up as pretty as you, and as clever as you. I want to." She smiled. "You sound like a nice lady. My daddy said he loves you lots. I'll let you talk to daddy now, bye bye." She hugged the gravestone, then climbed back onto Sharpay's lap. Troy laughed, tears filling his eyes.  
"I said I'd show her to you this year, didn't I? She really is just like you, Gabs… It helps me so much. I know she's not even yours, but her mannerisms, the amount of affection she shows…It's like you're here. I guess that's what you meant…about being in my heart. It still hurts but….I did what you asked me to do. I moved on. I've got….an amazing daughter now, and a perfect family. But I couldn't think of any name that fit her better than yours. I still miss you every single moment of every single day. But I know you're here. And that's all that matters." Troy took a deep breath, and kissed his fingers, placing them on top of the stone, before standing up, and cuddling his family. All six of them stood there for a few minutes, before they decided it was time to head home. They made arrangements when they planned to meet up next, before Kelsi and Ryan led Chad and Taylor to their car to drive them home.  
"Come on, let's go." Said Sharpay, wheeling herself over to the car door. Troy nodded, and after strapping Gabriella into the back of the car, he felt a soft breeze pass through the otherwise warm day. He smiled.  
"Hey Gabs." He whispered. "Love you." He never told anyone this, but he swore he heard a voice in the wind.

"_Love you too…"_

**The End**


End file.
